RON MERK

Since 1967 Ron Merk has been an independent producer, director, and writer and distributor of films for children and the family. His most recent project, MARCO POLO RETURN TO XANADU, is being distributed by Warner Brothers Home Video, broadcast on Starz Encore Family Channel, and has won many festival awards in the U.S. and around the world.

Ron's other activities include: Importing classic & foreign films, including LA NOTTE by Michelangelo Antonioni. Ron has supervised the creation and marketing of merchandising under license from Warner Bros., Speed Racer Enterprises, MGM and King Features. He created all the multimedia for the long-running Broadway show OH! CALCUTTA! He's also been involved in co-productions with the Czech Film Studio, Barrandov, LOOKING FOR LENNON and LEBENSBORN, and was the first producer to make a film in the Czech Republic after the Velvet Revolution.

Ron's film restoration projects include HERCULES IN NEW YORK, with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the animated films of Max and Dave Fleischer, animation pioneers. To support the cause of film preservation Ron has donated large film and paper collections to the UCLA Film and Television Archives, The Museum of Modern Art, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, The Pacific Film Archive and The Library of Congress.

Ron has written numerous articles about film-making, and the business aspects of the motion pictures industry in Animation Magazine, Animation World Network, Film Festival Today & Release Print. He's been a panelist and juror at numerous U.S. and international film festivals and film industry events.

CAROLE DEUTCH

Carole Deutch has worked as a producer for over twenty years. Carole's career has spanned a broad range of film and video production from nationally acclaimed programs broadcast on The Disney Channel, HBO and PBS to high-end corporate marketing, national commercials and narrative films. Her signature programs include an Emmy award-winning special on nutrition for children, and award-winning educational videos about teen drug prevention and Sickle Cell disease, funded by the National Institutes of Health. As an Executive Producer for a Bay Area corporate communications company, Carole was responsible for the management of live events as well as film and interactive media. Currently, she produces business and fund-raising events for corporations and non-profit organizations. Carole's interest and involvement in the arts community evolved from her experience as a community organizer during the 1970s. As the director of a community center in San Francisco's Mission District, a heavily Latino populated area, Carole was instrumental in the development of social and cultural programs for youth, and was the Producer for “Carnaval San Francisco” during its rapid growth from a small street event to a regional Bay Area festival celebrating the Latino culture. Carole is presently also serving on the Board of Directors of Film Arts Foundation, a filmmaker support organization which has been serving the community for more than thirty years.


PETER L. STEIN

Peter L. Stein, joined the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival in 2003, where he presently serves as Executive Director in 2003, Peter has had an outstanding management career in the arts that spans theater, television, documentary film, film festivals and museums. From 1988-1999, Mr. Stein served as Executive Producer at public television station KQED (San Francisco), where he was responsible for developing and producing a wide range of series and programs for American public television. His documentary series Neighborhoods: The Hidden Cities of San Francisco has garnered critical acclaim and numerous prestigious awards, including the George Foster Peabody Award for its episode entitled "The Castro," which Mr. Stein wrote, produced and directed. His series, Green Means, short documentary profiles of environmental heroes around the world, is currently in its fourth season on PBS.

In October 1999 he joined The Jewish Museum San Francisco as Deputy Director for Programming, where he developed the museum's long-range program plan for its planned new facilities (designed by architect Daniel Libeskind) and oversaw ongoing exhibitions and curatorial staff. He was also the primary content developer for the museum's award-winning web site, www.jmsf.org. Among the original exhibitions he curated and/or produced are Hidden in the Walls: The Time Capsule from San Francisco's Lost Sanctuary; Face(t)s of Memory: Found Photographs and Family Albums; and a media-based exhibition focusing on the image of Israelis and Palestinians on film.

His most recent television documentary, which he wrote and produced, is "The Fillmore," a 90-minute history of San Francisco 's premier black neighborhood; it aired on PBS in June 2001, and is now regularly shown during Black History Month. Mr. Stein has also been honored for his culinary productions, including six seasons of programs with renowned chef Jacques Pépin.

Mr. Stein is an accomplished public speaker, having been a guest on such programs as NPR's "Fresh Air" and "Weekend Edition." He frequently moderates public panels and discussions for Bay Area theaters, museums, and media organizations, and has written film related features for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Mr. Stein is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Harvard University, and a third-generation San Francisco native.

GEORGE M. RUSH

George M. Rush is a Bay Area native who has received a BA in English from UC Berkeley and a JD from Hastings College of the Law. George began producing short films in the early 90's, eventually producing his first feature in 1997, “The Milkman.” He is currently in production on a documentary about junior college athletes in San Francisco.

George has worked with California Lawyers for the Arts and has a focus on arts-related legal issues. George has strong convictions about the importance of independent film, and the importance of the San Francisco Bay Area as a center for independent film production. He is on the board of Film Arts Foundation and speaks frequently on film related legal issues.

The Law Offices of George M. Rush is a San Francisco-based law practice specializing in the entertainment industry with emphasis on the San Francisco Bay Area film community. Projects have included producers, directors, screen-writers and investors in development, production and distribution phases. His special expertise includes working on international co-productions and issues of intellectual property. Clients have included The Devil and Daniel Johnston, Off the Charts, Teknolust, 24 Hours on Craigslist, Invitation to a Suicide, The Loss of Nameless Things, The Hamiltons, Full Grown Men and Straight Outta Hunter's Point. Each of these films represents a unique aspect of American culture and diversity.